Order Fulfillment

Perry Ellis International announced that it's amended and expanded its license agreement to design, manufacture and distribute apparel and related accessories with Callaway Golf Co. Perry Ellis will assume all distribution channels in the Western Hemisphere (U.S./Canada/Caribbean/Mexico/Central and Latin America), including sporting goods, national accounts, green grass, tournaments, specialty golf stores and e-commerce channels. Perry Ellis will continue to service better department and specialty stores and the corporate wear market as per its original agreement with Callaway. 

Office Depot has joined Supplier Connection, a group of 15 large businesses committed to driving small business growth by simplifying access to their global supply chains. Supplier Connection streamlines the application process for small businesses seeking to become suppliers to the group. Through the web-based portal, small businesses have the opportunity to present their goods and services to many large enterprises with the goal of winning contracts, expanding business and creating jobs. In addition to its one-stop registration capabilities, the website enables small suppliers to learn from, collaborate with, and sell to each other.

If free shipping is the industry standard, as eBay states, then 21 of 25 top e-commerce retailers haven't gotten the memo. A look at 25 retailers found that only Newegg, Costco and L.L.Bean offer unconditional free shipping (Netflix isn't applicable to this discussion). Most of the top retailers (18 of 25) offer free shipping as an incentive to increase order size, such as requiring shoppers to spend a minimum of $25 before becoming eligible for free shipping. While eBay sellers can offer combined shipping discounts, they're unable to use incentives like most e-commerce retailers thanks to eBay's rudimentary shopping cart.

Amazon.com announced plans today to locate a new fulfillment center in Jeffersonville, Ind., creating up to 1,050 new jobs by 2015 and approximately $150 million in investment in the state. “This is Amazon’s fifth Indiana facility, and the company is employing thousands of Hoosiers. We’re grateful for every one of those jobs,” said Governor Mitch Daniels. “These facilities will serve customers across the country, further cementing Indiana’s position as the country’s logistics capital.”

Online retail is big business. So big that online sales are expected to grow 10 percent each year until they reach nearly $280 billion in 2015. However, a great deal happens from the moment you confirm your order to the moment your package arrives on your doorstep. 

The Container Store has installed Jennifer VoicePlus for voice picking in its Dallas distribution center. At the Modex trade show in Atlanta last month, Christy Parra, logistics systems director at The Container Store, described the company's employee-first approach to the selection, implementation and start up of the Jennifer VoicePlus System.

State of the Social Universe: What Marketers Should Keep in Mind, from 4 Experts Who Can Help You Reach for the Stars

They shared their insights on where things are now, what trends are emerging, what marketers need to emphasize, and how they can make the most of it all. Sections include:

1) Drive the Mobile Vehicle Smartly, and Honor Your Email Opt-In Relationships
- Sara Meaney President, Strategy & Growth, Hanson Dodge Creative

2) It's About Location, Location, Location: Know Where Your Customer Is
- Asif Khan Founder and president of the Location Based Marketing Association

3) On the Rise: Social Intelligence
- Doug Camplejohn CEO of Fliptop

4) Start - and End - with Your Content
- Ann Handley Chief content officer for MarketingProfs

The way we communicate is moving-literally. Smart phones are outselling PCs, and tablet sales are expected to outpace desktop sales by 2013. But although the screens may be smaller, the possibilities for engagement are larger than ever.

You'll find the following covered in this handy whitepaper:

- What Does Mocial Mean for Marketers?
- Determining Your Mocial Strategy and Goals
- Growing Your Email Database Through Social and Mobile
- Making Email More Social
- Extending the Reach of Social and Mobile
- Deploying Integrated Programs Across Email, Social and Mobile

The direct-to-consumer retail channel is exploding. Can your operations keep pace as demand skyrockets? This whitepaper guides retailers through insightful questions to determine if outsourced order fulfillment is the next step to growing their business.

Amazon will now allow online media sellers to use its fulfillment service to reach a global audience for their off-Amazon transactions. Amazon expanded its multichannel fulfillment service, which allows sellers to fulfill orders from sales channels other than Amazon.com using the seller's own inventory that's stored in Amazon fulfillment centers and for which they pay Amazon fulfillment fees.